People v. Schmitt

562 N.E.2d 377, 204 Ill. App. 3d 820, 149 Ill. Dec. 913, 1990 Ill. App. LEXIS 1644
CourtAppellate Court of Illinois
DecidedOctober 25, 1990
Docket4-89-0264
StatusPublished
Cited by18 cases

This text of 562 N.E.2d 377 (People v. Schmitt) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Appellate Court of Illinois primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
People v. Schmitt, 562 N.E.2d 377, 204 Ill. App. 3d 820, 149 Ill. Dec. 913, 1990 Ill. App. LEXIS 1644 (Ill. Ct. App. 1990).

Opinion

JUSTICE McCULLOUGH

delivered the opinion of the court:

An Adams County jury convicted the defendant of aggravated criminal sexual assault (Ill. Rev. Stat. 1987, ch. 38, par. 12 — 14) and criminal sexual assault (Ill. Rev. Stat. 1987, ch. 38, par. 12 — 13). At trial, the victim, defendant’s nine-year-old son, C.S., testified via closed circuit television, as permitted by section 106A — 3 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of 1963 (Code) (Ill. Rev. Stat. 1987, ch. 38, par. 106A — 3). On appeal, the defendant challenges the constitutionality of this procedure, raises a denial of due process claim, various evidentiary issues, and urges an amendment to the sentencing order to clarify discrepancies in the entries.

C.S.’s parents were divorced when he was five years old. His mother has legal custody but C.S. visited his father, the defendant, every weekend at the house where defendant and the defendant’s mother lived. C.S. testified that, on occasion, the defendant asked him to lie down on a couch. The defendant would then remove C.S.’s pants and underwear and lick his penis. C.S. told his grandmother, Dorothy Post, defendant also licked his rectum.

C.S. stopped visiting the defendant in July 1988 after Post observed C.S. licking the buttocks of one of his cousins. When she confronted him with the behavior, C.S. denied licking his cousin. Post then asked, “Who did that, [C.S.]? Did you get that from Mindy or Tim?” C.S. testified he told her he got it from Tim, his father. Post testified C.S. told her he learned the behavior from his dad.

The defendant was charged by information with aggravated criminal sexual assault and criminal 'sexual assault. He subsequently filed several motions in limine, including a motion to prohibit the State from calling an expert witness to testify about rape-trauma syndrome. At the hearing on this motion, the prosecutor represented to the court, Judge Cashman, that C.S. had been traumatized by the abuse and had become hostile and angry, and suffered nightmares and bed-wetting.

Subsequently, the State filed a motion to videotape C.S.’s testimony pursuant to section 106A — 2 of the Code. (Ill. Rev. Stat. 1987, ch. 38, par. 106A — 2.) The State argued the procedure was necessary to protect C.S. from further trauma:

“I think at his age he doesn’t have the ability to put in perspective the seriousness of the sexual acts or the fact that his first sexual experience may have well been a homosexual experience with his father. To ask this child to get in front of 12 people, 14 people with alternates, and describe this type of sexual relations with his father I think is going beyond what we could ever appropriately accomplish in a court of justice.
* * *
The psychological reports that I have seen could show a rather fragile child that will suffer consequences and will suffer consequence no matter what we do. If we don’t do anything, he suffers. If we do, he suffers. I hope we can just minimize it by videotaping.”

Judge Cashman denied the motion, after determining the statute was unconstitutional. (On June 19, 1989, the Illinois Supreme Court found the videotape statute unconstitutional. People v. Bastien (1989), 129 Ill. 2d 64, 541 N.E.2d 670.)

The State then filed a motion to allow C.S.’s testimony via closed-circuit television. The State argued the procedure was in C.S.’s best interest:

“[I]n this situation we are dealing with a nine-year-old child. He is the son of the Defendant, and to ask a child at that age to describe for a huge courtroom that is a gigantic courtroom to a youngster, in front of 14 strangers that his first sexual experience is a homosexual experience with his father is per se overwhelmingly psychologically damaging. You can’t assume that any child would be able to comfortably and clearly describe his experiences.”

The defendant objected to the motion, claiming the procedure would violate his rights under the confrontation clause. He also argued the State failed to show the procedure was necessary. Judge Welch presided at this motion hearing and overruled the defendant’s objections. Judge Welch specifically found the closed-circuit television procedure was in C.S.’s best interest.

At trial, C.S. was the first witness and testified by closed-circuit television. The prosecutor, defense counsel, defendant, Judge Welch, C.S., and C.S.’s mother were in the judge’s chambers during C.S.’s testimony, which was broadcast into the courtroom for the jury. There were two television monitors in the courtroom. A clear, color picture and clear sound were transmitted instantaneously from the judge’s chambers to the courtroom. The defendant was not screened from C.S.’s sight. The camera focused on C.S.’s upper body and face.

Before leaving the courtroom to go to chambers, Judge Welch explained to the jury that C.S. would testify by closed-circuit television from chambers. He told the jury who would be in the room with C.S. during his testimony and who would remain in the courtroom. He also explained how the equipment functioned and instructed the jury to adjust the television monitors in the courtroom if necessary. The bailiff remained in the courtroom and was to notify the court immediately if there were equipment problems in the courtroom.

The defendant also testified at trial and denied ever licking C.S.’s penis. He hypothesized that C.S. made the statements to avoid punishment for licking his cousin. The jury convicted the defendant on both counts and the circuit court sentenced him to nine years’ imprisonment.

The first issue is whether the circuit court violated the defendant’s right of confrontation under the sixth amendment of the United States Constitution and under article I, section 8, of the Illinois Constitution when it permitted C.S. to testify via closed-circuit television. The defendant argues his constitutional right of confrontation was violated because the jury was not present in the room with C.S. while he testified and because the State failed to show the procedure was necessary.

The right of confrontation is unique to the defendant and functions to guarantee the defendant a face-to-face meeting with witnesses appearing before the trier of fact. (Coy v. Iowa (1988), 487 U.S. 1012, 1016, 101 L. Ed. 2d 857, 864, 108 S. Ct. 2798, 2800.) This right of confrontation:

“(1) insures that the witness will give his statements under oath — thus impressing him with the seriousness of the matter and guarding against the lie by the possibility of a penalty for perjury; (2) forces the witness to submit to cross-examination ***; (3) permits the jury that is to decide the defendant’s fate to observe the demeanor of the witness in making his statement, thus aiding the jury in assessing his credibility.” California v. Green (1970), 399 U.S. 149, 158, 26 L. Ed. 2d 489, 497, 90 S. Ct. 1930, 1935.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
562 N.E.2d 377, 204 Ill. App. 3d 820, 149 Ill. Dec. 913, 1990 Ill. App. LEXIS 1644, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/people-v-schmitt-illappct-1990.